2012 CANADIAN BOWL PREVIEW- By Tom Hallick, PFC Media Coordinator

         SASKATOON HILLTOPS AT LANGLEY RAMS

1PM KICKOFF (PST) SATURDAY NOVEMBER 10 MCLEOD STADIUM

ONLINE BROADCASTS: www.cjwwradio.com  2:30 CST (SASKATOON)

                                         www.cjfl.net; www.langleyrams.com12:30 PST (LANGLEY)

 The 2012 edition of the national junior championship will mark the third time in four seasons that the game is an All-Western affair. And just like the Jostens Cup clash, this will be the first ever meeting between the clubs. The Hilltops aim for their third consecutive Canadian title, while the Rams make their first national final appearance since 1992, when they called Surrey home. The Rams dropped a 35-18 decision to the Ottawa Sooners that year.

Let’s have a look at the teams.

SASKATOON HILLTOPS

Regular Season Record: 6-2 2nd, 257 PF, 142 PA,

Head Coach: Tom Sargeant

How They Got Here: Downed Edmonton Wildcats 42-11 in conference semi-final, Downed Regina Thunder 37-0 in PFC Championship Game; Defeated London 51-7 in Jostens Cup Game.

Who to Keep an Eye On:

REC Kyle McGinnis:

 The 4^th-year pass catcher had 4 grabs for 55 yards against London and was the go-to-guy as whenever they needed a big catch; McGinnis would get his mitts on the ball. He placed 3^rd in receiving with 42 catches for 622 yards.

RB Andre Lalonde:

Lalonde ran wild again in the Jostens Cup Game as he ran for 86 yards on 8 carries as he only saw 1^st half action in the rout. Lalonde was 3^rd in the PFC rushing race with 741 yards.

REC Graham Unruh:

Unruh finished 7^th in receiving in the conference with 35 catches for 473 yards and scored 4 touchdowns.

LB Ben Cressman

The PFC Defensive Player of the Year & nominee for the Larry Wruck Award was 4^th in the PFC Defensive Points standings with 92. Cressman was in on 43 combined tackles & intercepted a pair of passes in 2012.

LB Donovan Dale:

Dale was in on 7 tackles and forced a fumble in the win over London.  The 4^th-year linebacker was selected to the PFC All-Star Team.

The Wildcard:

For a 3^rd straight week, we’ll focus on the pivots in this space. If there has been a single aspect of the Hilltops that has Tom Sargeant losing just a little sleep at night, it’s been the play of the quarterbacks.  Matt Karpinka had a solid start in the Jostens Cup as he passed for 152 yards & a pair of touchdowns, while Jared Andreychuk completed just 4 of 13. Look for Karpinka & Andreychuk to split time on Saturday.

The Skinny:

The Saskatoon defense engineered the Jostens Cup win, no doubt about it as they forced 8 MORE turnovers, giving them an unbelievable 23 so far on their playoff run.  And the offense is starting to cook. Now, about that quarterback position? So far, that’s the only concern Hilltops bench boss Tom Sargeant has.

LANGLEY RAMS

Regular Season Record:  7-2-1, 2^ND 423 PF 161 PA

Head Coach: Jeff Alamohoda

How They Got Here: Blanked Westshore Rebels 33-0 in conference semi-final; Won Cullen Cup Final 20-13 over Vancouver Island Raiders

Who to Keep an Eye on:

QB Greg Bowcott

Bowcott was the man with the steady hand who guided the Rams to their championship win in monsoon conditions. He completed just 10 of 20 passes for 247 yards. He joined the Rams from Simon Fraser and passed for 2012 yards and 23 touchdowns.

WR/KR Nick Downey

Downey was simply electrifying on punt returns in 2012, returning 26 for 568 yards and scoring 4 touchdowns. He returned a missed field goal 120 yards for a touchdown in the Rams semi-final win over Westshore. Downey also caught 37 passes for 690 yards and scored 6 touchdowns.

WR Malcolm Williams

Williams led the BCFC in touchdowns with 13 and snagged 42 catches for 768 yards. The conference Rookie of the Year was held to only 2 catches in the title game. Williams was a walk-on at Rams camp, having played Basketball at UBC last season.

DB Evan Foster:

Foster joined the Rams from the Vancouver Island Raiders and led the club with 9.5 sacks. He chalked up a pair against his former mates in the conference final.

DB Adam Konar:

The BCFC Defensive Player of the Year’s numbers may not jump out at you as he had 16 tackles but recorded 5 sacks, but time & time again; he was in the opposition backfield disrupting whatever the offense had in mind.

The Wildcard:

RB Kyle Albertini

Albertini wasn’t the main back in the Rams run scheme, but he made things happen when called upon as he gained 440 yards on the season. He ran a game-high 17 times for just 59 yards in the Cullen Cup win.

The Skinny:

They might be the underdogs, but discount the Rams at your own peril as they eliminated the 6-time defending champion Vancouver Island Raiders on their home field, which is not easy when you consider the Raiders have only lost twice now in their last 51 home games. And if you’re wondering just who the other team to win in Nanaimo over that span is, if you said the Hilltops, you’d be right.

The key to a Rams win will undoubtedly be winning the turnover battle and they forced the Raiders to cough the ball up 7 times in the Cullen Cup victory. Look for the Canadian Bowl to be a battle of the defenses.                                                       

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                                               For more information, please contact,

                                               Tom Hallick, PFC Media Coordinator

                                                  Cell:             (204) 218-6596

                                                 E-Mail:        thallick@shaw.ca

                                                     Web:           www.pfcfootball.com;   www.gorillacagemedia.com